A nurse treats William Tse, left, a 24-year-old San Carlos resident and University of Southern California graduate student, in this undated photo. Tse was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia on Jan. 14, 2013. He is being treated at Stanford Hospital, according to Williamís older brother Marvin Tse. Joining the registry requires only a quick cheek swab, according to the Asian American Donor Program, and donors give their bone marrow blood through needles, not surgery. To join the bone marrow donor registry, visit www.aadp.org. (Photo courtesy of the Asian American Donor Program)

William Tse, a 24-year-old college student from San Carlos who loves to play soccer, is in a hospital with leukemia and his hope for survival rests on finding a bone-marrow donor.

Because he is Chinese and there aren't many ethnic minority donors on the national registry, his chances aren't good, said Carol Gillespie, executive director of the nonprofit Asian American Donor Program.

Tse was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia on Jan. 14. He is being treated at Stanford Hospital, according to his older brother, Marvin Tse.

Bone-marrow drives -- which involve a quick cheek swab to collect cell samples -- are being held this weekend in San Jose, Santa Clara and Sunnyvale, according to the nonprofit, which has an online list of registration drives at www.aadp.org.

Potential donors need to be between 18 and 44 years old and in good health, according to the organization. There's no cost to register.

The person selected actually will be donating blood stem cells removed from either the marrow or circulating blood, Gillespie said. Needles are involved, but no surgery or stitches.

"I don't think that's a whole lot to ask for to save a life," Gillespie said.

The news of William Tse's illness has devastated his family, Marvin Tse said. Just a few months ago, his younger sibling was in Los Angeles attending graduate school classes at USC and playing soccer.

"He's an extremely outdoorsy kid," said Marvin Tse, also a San Carlos resident. Their mother lives in Singapore. "This hit hard."

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Marvin Tse, who works at Google, said he organized a donor registration drive this week at the tech company's Mountain View campus. About 200 people of various ethnicities signed up, he said.

"I strongly believe that for every person like William, there's people from other backgrounds," Tse said. "It's not just for folks who can be a match for William."

William Tse had already accepted a post-graduation offer to work in the Bay Area office of an international tax and audit firm, Marvin Tse said.

"The main thing I tell people about registering is, it's not asking for a whole lot and it could save a life," he said.